Microsoft Office Headed to Android and iOS in 2013

Microsoft is reportedly in the process of porting its Office productivity suite over to iOS and Android devices. This isn't the first we've heard of Office Mobile, nor has Microsoft officially confirmed the news, but screenshots and inside information have all but tipped the release as imminent. It will ship first to iOS and then Android, starting in early 2013, perhaps as early as February.

This information comes courtesy of The Verge, which received its intel "through several sources close to Microsoft's plans." As The Verge tells it, Office Mobile will initially be offered as a free app that allows iOS and Android users to view Microsoft Office documents (Word, PowerPoint, and Excel). Using it will require a Microsoft account.

Those with an Office 365 subscription will be able to edit documents in Office Mobile, and there will be an option to purchase a subscription from within the app. Look for this to include basic editing functions and not the full assortment of tools available in the desktop version.

As previously mentioned, iOS users get first dibs on Mobile Office, either in late February or early March of next year. An Android release is scheduled for May.